Hold On
by klcthenerd
Summary: Life and death. That was the situation that had been at hand. While most of the crew had been abandoning ship and loading the necessities into the longboat, three people were detached from the scene and stuck in a web of unfortunate consequences. WE
1. Chapter 1

Full Summary:

Life and death. That was the predicament of the situation that had been at hand. While most of the crew had been abandoning ship and loading the necessities into the longboat, three people were detached from the scene and stuck in a web of unfortunate consequences. Willabeth. Just ignore AWE, savvy?

Disclaimer: I own nothing in relation to Pirates of the Caribbean. It's all Disney. Kudos to them.

Hold On

**.::.Chapter 1.::.**

Rain as cold as the ice in the arctic pelted down on the unfortunate crew of the _Mystic _as the ship sailed to Singapore. The current captain, a Captain Hector Barbossa, was shouting orders at the shivering pirates on deck.

However, half the crew was just running around the ship, not sure what orders were directed at them and which were directed at their shipmates.

But the rest of the crew was dutifully making progress in taking orders. Gibbs had control of the ship, trying to make sure that the _Mystic_ didn't swagger off course. Most of the others were trying to roll the sails to give Gibbs more control while steering. Among these calloused hands working the ropes were those of Elizabeth Swann and William Turner.

Both of them were pulling the ropes with all their might, praying that it would prove to be a fruitful task. Many of the crew members were slipping on the deck due to the fact that there were small patches of ice forming as the rain made contact with the wood. It was only a matter of time before someone aqquired a wound that would hinder their ability to work.

"Heave!" Will Turner shouted to everyone who was attempting to roll the sails.

Everyone obeyed and took a giant step back, yanking at the rope with every ounce of strength they posessed. Another good pull and they would have this sail ready. Will opened his mouth to shout another order, but someone beat him to it.

"Again!" the only female onboard shouted. She, along with everyone else took another step backwards, hauling with them the rope. The crew let out a round of cheers as Pintel wrapped the rope around the mast, securing it in place. That was the last sail that had been open, there was no more work to be done.

Marty ran over to Captain Barbossa to ask for more orders as most of the crew stood perfectly still, hoping that they could at last get some sleep.

For Elizabeth, however, sleep was the last thing in her mind.

She had been so tired these last few weeks, guilt and torment nibbling at her insides every time she tried to forget what she did. No matter how much she told herself that it had actually been a good deed to save the crew, her heart told her otherwise.

She had killed a man. She had killed a man, and in the process, broken another's heart. She was a horrible person.

_Pirate._

She didn't know what to do. She wanted to confront Will, tell him everything, explain herself, but she found that she couldn't. Why? She didn't know, but she couldn't. She needed to think, she needed to be alone, they needed to hurry up and rescue Jack.

She still remembered the look in his eyes as she ran across the deck and left him chained to his ship, the _Black Pearl_. Fear, anger, a hint of pride, and hurt. Had she done the right thing? Was she right in tricking him to save herself and the crew?

She didn't know, but every time she thought of leaving Jack, her mind replayed the scene in her mind, causing her frustration, shame, and pain. Especially when the scene continued to when she had abandoned onto the longboat, and he looked at her. Not Jack, but another man.

A man whom she had known for eight years and counting. A man whom she loved. A man who could make her heart beat faster and make her spirit soar every time he said her name. Will Turner. And she had broken his heart.

He never told her this, though. Actually, he hadn't spoken to her much since she left Jack on the ship, telling the others he elected to stay behind. But she knew. She saw it in his eyes, she heard it in his voice, she sensed it.

And that's what killed her more than anything. Knowing that she had hurt a perfectly innocent man when she didn't mean to. She never thought anyone would see her kissing Sparrow before she locked him to the ship, she hadn't forseen the situation. But it had happened. And she hated herself for it.

She walked slowly to the other side of the ship as the rest of the crew headed to their quarters to rest. She leaned foward over the railing and stared into the depths of the churning black water.

William Turner closed his eyes as he layed in his hammock, the boat furiously moving side to side. He knew he needed sleep, his reflexes had been horibble the last few weeks. But every time he closed his eyes, he immediately opened them. The picture of them was burned into his mind.

He had been loading guns and necessities into the longboat to go ashore when he whipped his head back to the boat and saw them. Elizabeth, his fiance, the woman he loved and would do anything for, and Jack Sparrow, the rum-soaked, notorious pirate. Kissing. Quite passionately too, if you asked Will.

He couldn't get the image from his mind, or his heart.

And the look on her face when she said that he elected to stay behind. Despair was etched into her features. That's when it occured to Will. Elizabeth had loved him.

He had been everything she was taught to fear, to loathe, and that's what attracted her to him. Elizabeth was the governer's daughter. He was a pirate. She hated her prim and proper lady-like life, she wanted an adventure. A pirate. Not a blacksmith.

It tortured him to think of her and Jack together. That she would never love him, Will, as he had loved her. He didn't understand how he could have been so foolish in thinking she would settle for something as calm and normal as a blacksmith.

These thoughts haunted his mind every night, normally calling for a midnight stroll on the deck. Standing up and staggering slightly, due to the storm, he decided that the deck would be mostly cleared. Perfect for sorting out his thoughts.

Up on deck, just like he suspected, there was only the figure of the Captain, who had taken over the duty of steering the ship.

Will slowly milled about the ship, lost in his thoughts.

She had told him she loved him. Was the shift from him to Jack gradual or sudden? What had caused it? Why hadn't she talked to him about it? Why hadn't she talked to him period?

Granted, in all fairness, Will hadn't tried his hardest to talk to her, but that's because he was confused. Confused, angry, hurt, you name it. But he still loved her.

He always would. No matter what. No matter who she loved, no matter what happened, his heart belonged to her, it always had.

It always would.

As he turned and began walking in the opposite direction, he noticed a person standing by the railing, and his stomach tightened a little.

"Elizabeth?" he whispered gently.

The golden brown-haired beauty jumped a bit as she turned around, hand reaching for her sword. She relaxed visibly when she saw it was only will. She tensed up on the inside, though. "Will. You startled me," she stated, focusing her eyes on the floor. She couldn't look him in the eyes. Not when she knew what she was causing him.

He gently lifted her face to where her soft, caramel brown eyes met with his dark brown ones. They were both boring into the other's soul, wondering what pain the other was going through. Elizabeth broke the connection and looked past his head. She couldn't bear to think of what she was putting him through.

"Elizabeth, we really need to talk about this." Will immediately regretted speaking these words. As he searched her face, he saw her expression turn to one of dread and fear.

She shot past him like a bullet, running for Captain Barbossa.

"Barbossa!" she screamed. But the shout was lost in the roar of the storm.

Her actions had Will puzzled until he turned to face the direction she had been facing only seconds earlier. His eyes befell on the subject which had Elizabeth acting so strangely. There, towering high above the ship, was a fifty-foot wave, gaining altitude before it bore down on the ship.

Elizabeth, still running towards the captain, neglected to spot a rather large ice patch on the deck. The foot she placed on the frozen spot began to rise into the air as she began falling backwards.

Fortunately for her, Will had been running in her direction, about to warn her of said ice, when she began to fall. He quickly reached out to catch her before she hit the frozen ground.

Her eyes were shut tightly for the second after he caught her, as if bracing herself for the impact that was supposed to come. Her soft pink lips were pressed into a tight line, as if she did not want to scream when she hit her head on the wooden deck.

Feeling a muscular arm and torso cradling her body, she opened one of her eyes to look around as one of her hands brushed wet gold-brown hair out of it's line of vision. She opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off as the monstrous wave crashed down on the ship.

A minute or two passed. The impact of the wave wasn't as bad as the two had expected. A rail or two here and there were broken, some barrels were tossed aside, etc. It could have been much worse.

Will looked down at Elizabeth, who had grabbed ahold of him tightly when the wave crashed down. His eyes told her to go on and say what she had been intending to say originally. Whether she knew this or not, her response to his look was simple.

She spit out the salty sea water that had found its way into her mouth with a sour look on her face before walking off.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: So yeah. I hope Ya'll liked the first chapter! In this one...Elizabeth might be a bit OOC. Sorry in advanced, this is my first _Pirates_ fic. Regardless, I had fun writing her in this chapter. So without further wait, here's chapter two! I've already started on chapter 3!

Disclaimer: Once again. I don't own Pirates of the Caribbean nor do I own anything associated with it, savvy?

Remember to review!

**.::.Chapter 2.::.**

They were almost to Singapore. Half a day's sail away until they could get a better ship.

Commandeer a better ship, to tell the truth.

Nine days had passed since the treacherous storm, and Will and Elizabeth had barely spoken two words to each other. Elizabeth normally refined herself to the crow's nest or kept busy following orders. Will, too, followed the Captain's orders, but when he wasn't, he was normally below deck.

Their peculiar behavior had drawn the attention of the crew, it had since the second week on board. They just figured it wasn't any of their business. So they let the two wallow in their emotions.

Elizabeth, sitting in the crow's nest, looked out over the calm waters as they neared Singapore. She was miserable. Especially after last week, when Will had saved her twice in one minute.

First, if he hadn't caught her, she would've hit her head, possibly broken something, who knew? Second of all, if she hadn't clung on to him when the wave crashed down on them, she was almost certain it would've carried her away. True, it hadn't been as bad as she had expected, but compared to the men, she was a petite little creature.

She had broken his heart, but he still saved her. In retrospect, she guessed that it was the sensible thing to do. She was about to tell him 'Thank you' when the wave crashed into them. Afterwards, she had just walked off without telling him.

She couldn't speak to him without wanting to tell him everything. Sure, it sounded like a reasonable thing to do, but she was afraid. Afraid of what he would think of her after knowing she had killed Jack.

She looked uneasily at the item she had brought up to her post. She didn't know why she did it. Perhaps it was impulse? Whatever force it was, she was torn. Torn between deluding her troubles for a few hours, or taking the high road and facing her problems like a big girl.

Even though she knew that it would possibly lead to trouble, Elizabeth picked up the bottle of rum, eyeing it before sighing and taking a heavy swig.

Will was below deck, chipping pieces of wood away from the bottom of the ship. He flung the knife in to where it was barely in at all, and simply pulled down on the handle. The results were minor, yet satisfying.

She had been about to say something. Maybe even explain herself, but, like everything in Will's life, things could never be that easy. The wave just had to crash down at that moment.

He wanted to talk to her, ask her what was wrong, but he couldn't. Every time he inhaled to say something, he found himself wanting to do so many things. Accuse her, comfort her, kiss her, hold her. He was never sure which one would win out, and he didn't want to go making things worse.

Will, now light-headed from staring at the ground and thinking too much, stood up, swayed and emerged onto the deck.

He looked around to see most of the crew milling about, looking at the water, looking for rum, the usual.

"Land, ho!" Someone from the crow's nest shouted. The person then busted into a fit of mad laughter.

While most of the crew ran to the railings to get a better look of Singapore, Will slowly turned around to look up to the crow's nest. What he saw only confirmed what he already knew.

Golden brown locks cascaded over the protective rail of the platform. He could also make out the figure of a brown bottle enclosed in Elizabeth's right hand.

Was she- could she be...was Elizabeth drunk?

"Yo-ho! Yo-ho! A pirate's life for me!"

Will took that as a yes.

As the rest of the crew was celebrating at the end of their journey, Will began making his way to the crow's nest. They were to commandeer a ship as soon as they docked, and Elizabeth was in no condition to come down without help.

As he reached the top, he quickly climbed over the bar protecting the occupant from falling. Making sure he still had a little time before they docked, Will turned to look at the woman he loved.

She was leaning against the bar, her arms open, the nearly empty bottle of rum in her right hand. Her hair was spilling over the edge of the pole that was the support for her upper body. She had a blissful smile on her face as she looked around.

"Why hello Mr. Turner!" she spoke loudly, despite the fact he was but two feet away. "What are you doing on this fine day?"

"Elizabeth, are you alright?" Will asked quietly. He had heard stories while in Tortuga about folks who drank more rum than they were used to. They were never quite the same after that. Will was almost certain that Elizabeth had never had this much of the substance before. He made a reach for the bottle, but she quickly pulled it away.

"Just a little more," she spat out quickly. "I'm almost done, see?" She turned the bottle upside down, the remaining contents spilling onto her lap. She seemed to analyze it for a moment before looking up. "Well, it appears I'm done."

"Elizabeth, what possessed you to consume rum? You always said you hated the drink," Will asked her. He should have known that she wouldn't give him a straight answer, in her condition. Or maybe she would. You never knew with Elizabeth Swann.

"Pain," she shrugged. "Plus," she added, puffing out her chest a bit, "rum _is_ a pirate drink. And I'm a pirate. Jack even said so himself."

Jack. The mention of the deceased made Will's chest tighten for a moment as the picture of Jack and Elizabeth flashed in his mind. She was trying to drink away the pain of losing him. If Elizabeth had been sober, she would have recognized the presence of pain and sorrow in Will's handsome features.

As if reading Will's thoughts, she lifted the bottle to her lips, tilted her head back, and brought it forward with a reminiscent look on her face. "Ah yes, empty. Forgot." She effortlessly tossed the rounded bottle over the edge of the platform. It landed in the ocean with a soft '_sloosh_'.

"Well, we're about to dock, we need to start making our way to the deck. Give me your hand, I'll help you down," Will said to her. He extended his hand, waiting for her to place her soft, small one in it.

"What makes you think I need help, Mr. Turner?" Elizabeth asked, pushing up from her sitting position. "I'm perfectly capable of taking care of my self, but thank you for your concern." As a wave lapped at the ship, she staggered slightly, causing Will to grab her hand out of instinct.

At the sudden move, Elizabeth threw him an annoyed look. "Mr. William, I said I need no help." With that, she slid her hand from his grasp, took hold of a rope, and swung down onto the deck, sticking the landing.

Will quickly climbed down, jumping the last few footholds. When he turned around, he was face to face with Elizabeth, who was smirking at him.

"Told you I could do it on my own. Just because I've had a lot of rum does not mean I am a danger to myself."

The blacksmith-turned-pirate furrowed his eyebrows, thinking of everything that was wrong with that statement. This was Elizabeth Swann, perhaps one of the most stubborn women alive today. She was a danger when she was sober, if just increased a tenfold when she was drunk, apparently.

"We're pullin' into Singapore! Everyone, on me orders!" Barbossa called.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hey guys! Sorry it took so long to update. My recital's coming up, so I have extra practice for 3 weeks. But on the bright side, I get to see AWE for the fourth time on Thursday! YAY!

I don't know how long it will be until you get another update. I'm shooting for next week at the latest. See, I have summer school (I'm trying to get extra credits for high school), dance, chores, and all that good stuff. And I should be reading...but I'm reading online instead. -bad kelsey-. So yeah, I've rambled enough, here's chapter 3!

reviews equal love

**.::.Chapter 3.::.**

The sounds of blades clashing could be heard throughout the city.

The _Mystic_'s crew had run into a bit of trouble as they were commandeering the ship. There had been armed guards hiding under the docks and around the corners. As Barbossa, Marty, and Cotton had been loading supplies onto the _Rising Sun_, the guards had jumped out of their hiding places, ambushing the crew, who immediately unsheathed their swords.

Even in a slightly drunken state, Elizabeth was excellent with a sword. As they say, danger sharpens the senses. Miss Swann was living proof of this statement. She wasn't fighting as her best, but she was aware of every move her enemies were making.

As she was blocking attempts made on her, she noticed that more guards were coming her way, no doubt thinking she would fall easy since she was a woman.

"Oh bloody-" she quickly made a lunge at her opponent, successfully rendering him unable to continue the fight. She looked at the four men advancing on her.

They all had a sinister looking gleam in their eyes. Acting on a rash impulse, she grabbed her fallen opponent's sword. She gave the four men a slightly disgusted look, which caused all four to charge at her simultaneously.

The next few moments were a blur to Elizabeth, all she remembered was that it included grunts, cries of pain, and her jumping over a sword on multiple accounts. When the squabble died down a bit, she could see that two of the men were on the ground, small pools of blood beneath them both. One of her swords had been thrown from her hand, lying twenty feet from her current position.

A few stray golden hairs were hanging in her sweating face as she breathed deeply. She kept her eye contact with the two guards as she wiped her forehead with the back of her hand.

Using her peripheral vision, she was able to look at the other members of the crew. She saw that though most of the crew was still fighting, some had managed to break away and load supplies.

Thinking that she wasn't watching, one of the men lunged at her, earning him a sword through a vital organ or two. As Elizabeth retracted her sword, she looked at the survivor of her original four attackers. He had a bit of fear in his posture, almost ready to retreat if needed.

Elizabeth hatefully smiled at him as she drew a pistol. She raised it up, pointed at him, and cocked the gun. The guard visibly stiffened. Her finger pulled the trigger just as she instead aimed it over to where Will was locked in a squabble with two men. Her eyes were still looking at the man in front of her, but she knew that the bullet found its target, successfully lodging itself into one of the attackers, killing him instantly.

Replacing the gun to where it had originally been, Elizabeth raised her sword, challenging her opponent to attack her. She waited for what seemed like two seconds before the man retreated. She wore a smug smile as she sheathed her sword and looked around.

Most of the guards had either retreated or been killed, with few casualties for the pirates. Raggetti seemed to have a bleeding wound on the side of his abdomen and Marty seemed to have a gash across his forehead, but other than that, the rest of the crew seemed unharmed.

She began to run to the _Mystic_, her focus set on helping move supplies. She ran past Barbossa and Will, who were fighting three persistent guards. As she ran up the gang plank, she nearly knocked over Pintel, who had his arms full of bottles of rum.

"Sorry Miss Swann, just tryin' to get supplies to the new ship," he apologized before taking off and running through the battle scene.

Elizabeth looked around the ship, there was nothing that needed to be transferred. As she looked around once more, she heard a sinister laugh and the cocking of a gun. She turned to see the guard that retreated had returned and was now aiming at her.

Her legs felt like lead. She was paralyzed with fear, glued to her spot. All she could hear was the pounding of her heart in her chest and a voice calling her name. She managed to take her eyes off her attacker long enough to see Will rushing up the gangplank to assist her in unloading.

Her mind only had a moment to process what was about to happen. Will was about to cross in the path of the bullet.

"Will, watch out!" she screamed, tackling him immediately after the guard pulled the trigger. A loud _Bang!_broke through the noise of the battle, causing heads to turn for a seconds' notice.

Elizabeth squeezed her eyes shut as she fell to the ground on top of Will. That had been extremely close. She had almost lost him. And she was not going to let that happen, whether they were speaking or not.

* * *

Will gazed up at Elizabeth, who was lying on top of him. She was breathing heavy, still trembling from the scare that they had just encountered. Will made an effort to look to the left, where he saw the guard re-loading his gun. 

Sliding Elizabeth's pistol out of its holder, Will aimed at the guard while his back was turned, and shot him. He then laid the pistol down and wrapped his arms around Elizabeth, trying to calm her. It was then he realized that she was holding her arm, as if noticing something that she did not want him seeing. However, as he moved his arm to accommodate her in a more comfortable manner, he noticed what she was hiding.

On his light brown shirt, there was a damp spot of maroon. Will looked at Elizabeth with fear in his eyes. "Elizabeth?"

She stood up, her hand pressed tightly over her upper arm. "I'm fine, really, now let's go before Barbossa sails without us." She looked behind her to see Will standing up, doubt clouding his face. "Trust me Will, now let's go!" She commanded, rushing off the ship.

On her way to the _Rising Sun_, she saw that only one of the crew members was still fighting. She momentarily let go of her left arm, grabbing her sword with the unharmed limb. In one quick motion, she plunged it through the middle of the Singaporean man, whose back was turned to her. She withdrew the weapon and followed Ragetti to the ship.

She reached it and barely made it aboard. Barbossa was at the helm, starting for a direction. Elizabeth turned around to face land just in time to see Will at the edge of the dock, backing up to jump onto the rope ladder that hadn't been recoiled.

"Will, take my hand!" Elizabeth shouted as he jumped. His feet and one hand found the ladder, his right hand in Elizabeth's left. She helped pull him up, ignoring the sharp pain that was throbbing in her arm.

Once will was safely on the ship, Marty and Cotton rolled the ladder and took it to be stored away. Will looked at the dock as they sailed off. "Thank you for what happened back there," he said, nodding towards the _Mystic_.

Elizabeth nodded, closing her eyes in pain as her hand shot up to the wound in her arm. Her body was shaking and she was bleeding steadily. She thought of who she could ask to take a look at it and make sure it was nothing to be worried about. Gibbs? Yes, it sounded like a good plan, Gibbs had seen plenty in his day. But she found, to her horror, she couldn't get up the strength to move her legs.

Will, who had turned back around to face her, saw what was happening. "Elizabeth?" he asked, voice filled with panic. Before he could take even a step toward her, she fell to the ground in a heap.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: -smiles nervously-. So...here's chapter 4! I really don't know when the next time I will update Hold On. You see, I had this dream where pirates were trying to kill me while I was trying to get into my dance recital I guess that's what happens when you see AWE 4 times. Soon to be six after Sunday and Tuesday, and it gave me an idea for a new story! I will still try to write on this one, but right now, I'm going to write on the other one, entitled The Power of a Pirate's Love. I'd really appreciate if you would help me out and read/review/favourite/story alert that one. I've already got the first chapter completed. Look for it later today on 6/9/07! And because I'm not completely mean like that, here's the next chapter so your not left with that cliffhanger!

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Kudos Disney. Yada yada.

**.::.Chapter 4.::.**

The figures of Will Turner and Mr. Gibbs were sitting in separate chairs in a dimly lit room. In the center of the two was Elizabeth Swann, eyes closed, skin pale, lying on a bed. Barbossa had allowed the men to bring the unconscious female into his quarters, realizing this was quite a situation on their hands.

Up on deck, Will had shouted at Gibbs while he cradled Elizabeth in his arms, ripping off a piece of cloth from his shirt and tying it around the bleeding hole in her arm. From there, it had been a rushed blur, the only coherent thought in his mind being '_Please don't let her die_'.

Will only took his eyes off her when he was speaking to Gibbs. She had been in this room for about eight hours, stirring every once in a while. Gibbs and Will would alternate shifts starting that night, Gibbs being the first to leave.

And so the time came for Will to be the only awake person in the room. Minutes felt like hours as he waited for his love to open her eyes, but the time never came. It was like she was in deep, troubling sleep, stirring occasionally, murmuring every now and then.

It was about an hour after Gibbs left, Will guessed, when he was actually able to understand what she was murmuring.

"No...no...Jack..."

Will quickly averted his gaze from the sleeping woman. She was miserable without Jack. Will just had to accept it, even if he didn't want to. She didn't love him anymore. At least not in that way, possibly like a brother, or a dog or something.

She loved Jack. She wanted Jack. And Will just wanted her to be happy, even if that meant he wasn't included. They needed to rescue the pirate soon.

Will looked down at the floor, his hands clenched, his face set into an expression of deep contemplation. Blurs of memories swam in his mind over the next hour or so. Memories of him and Elizabeth, him and Jack, him, Elizabeth, and Jack, the crew, everything.

And that one memory. The one that wouldn't erase itself from his mind.

Jack and Elizabeth on the Black Pearl.

Will was so lost in his mind, he didn't notice as Elizabeth's eyes fluttered open slightly.

* * *

She felt weak. Very, very weak. She remembered fainting up on deck after fighting in Singapore. Why though? Elizabeth tried to sit up, but felt a shooting pain in her left arm.

Oh right. Bullet.

She peered through her barely-open eyes to look around the room. It was a dark, cramped room, that was for sure. Other than the lapping of water against the ship, she could one hear one thing.

She could hear the steady breathing of another occupant in the room. Without even seeing him, she knew was there. Her mouth struggled to form his name; all energy was drained from her body.

"W-Will..."she whispered, trying to let him know that she was awake. After she struggled a little bit, she managed to push herself up using her right arm. Elizabeth softly smiled as Will looked up, startled that she had said his name.

"Feeling better?" he asked, returning her smile.

She nodded, sighing as she did so. "How long have I been here?" she asked. She placed her left arm in her right, ignoring the pain that was coming from it.

Will had to think about the time. It seemed like they had been in here only minutes, yet also felt like an eternity. "Ten hours?"

Elizabeth's eyes widened in shock. "What? Ten hours? How close are we to the Locker?" She began trying to kick the covers off of her legs, her right arm assisting her. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed, her shoes still on her feet.

The blacksmith looked at her, confusion on his face. "Elizabeth, do you not remember what happened? You-"

"Were shot while fighting in Singapore, then fainted on the deck of the ship. I know, but I'm not going to sit here and do nothing while everyone else is working on deck," she responded, standing up, her legs shaking slightly.

"But your arm-"

"Will be perfectly fine."

"You lost a lot of blood Elizabeth. It wouldn't be wise to overexert yourself so soon," he told her, standing up from his seat and walking to stand in front of her, blocking the door.

"Will, if I wanted to sit around and do absolutely nothing while everyone else worked, I would have stayed in Port Royal. Now kindly move aside so I can resume my duties."

"Stay here, Elizabeth. At least until I go fetch Barbossa so _someone_ can talk some sense into you." Without waiting for a reply, he turned to walk out the door.

He walked into the starry night, seeing the few figures of pirates obeying orders. He walked over to the helm where he found Captain Barbossa steering the ship.

"Captain Barbossa, Elizabeth's awake. She requests to see you; she wants to return to her duties."

He was greeted by a look of surprise from the Captain, his eyebrows raised so high they disappeared behind his hat. "Gibbs," he called over his shoulder, his eyes still connected with Will's, "take control of the helm."

"Aye Captain!"

Will and Barbossa made their way to Elizabeth's current residence, knocking before they entered. Having been granted access, Barbossa opened the door to find Elizabeth sitting on her bed, her arm cradled in a sling made of scrap sheets.

"So Miss Swann, Mr. Turner here tells me that ye want to resume ye duties, that be true?" Barbossa asked her.

"Yes, it is."

"Now Ms. Swann, you be in no condition to resume ye duties-"

"I'm fine!" Elizabeth insisted, standing up and wobbling a bit. A look from Barbossa led her to explode. "If I wanted to do nothing, I'd have stayed in Port Royal! Give me something to do on deck, at least!"

Barbossa pondered this request. Heaving a large sigh, he relented. "Aye. Startin' in the mornin', ye be swabbin the deck till yer arm heals."

Elizabeth smiled. It hadn't been what she honestly wanted to do, but she'd take it.

Will looked bewildered. "What?"


End file.
